Chapter 425

Qiqi hearing this, instead fell silent, nodded and said: "Never mind, him going to Zilan Palace or going to Reserve Elegance Palace is the same. Anyway, my aunt will head to Da Yong after the New Year; once my aunt leaves, let him come to Reserve Elegance Palace again."

Hu Xiaotian, hearing she still cared about him, really felt a mix of laughter and tears, but temporarily escaping disaster was also fortunate. Having received a reward, it was a good opportunity to take his leave; Hu Xiaotian bade farewell to the Emperor.

Little Princess Qiqi, because her request wasn't satisfied, her mood was clearly affected, she said to Hu Xiaotian: "I'll go with you!"

Hu Xiaotian dared not refuse, and together with Qiqi he left Xuanweigong.

The two went out one after another from the Imperial Palace; Qiqi stared at Hu Xiaotian, coldly laughing nonstop. Hu Xiaotian realized this girl knew his background; last time in the wine cellar she had even grabbed his manhood, though she then thought she had caught a poisonous snake. Now this girl is gradually growing up; one can't rule out that she might guess he is a fake eunuch. If she knew he was a fake eunuch and still tried to get close to him, could it be that she harbored some special feeling toward him? The more Hu Xiaotian thought about it, the guiltier he felt.

Hu Xiaotian stopped at the intersection: "Princess, please!" The Imperial Gardens Bureau and the Reserve Elegance Palace are two different directions; here they should part ways.

Qiqi had no intention of leaving; Hu Xiaotian saw she wasn't going, he couldn't stay here to accompany her, he bowed and said: "Xiaotian will first take his leave."

Qiqi said: "I'll see you off!"

Hu Xiaotian thought to himself, "I don't have such blessings," and forced a smile: "Xiaotian, what merit do I have? I dare not let the Princess see me off."

Qiqi said: "I am willing!"

Hu Xiaotian felt helpless. Legs belong to the person; anyone can walk the road. Moreover, this is the Imperial Palace grounds, all their territory; he had no right to stop her, so he simply turned and walked away. The Little Princess followed behind, took two steps, then suddenly cried out, "Ouch!"

Hu Xiaotian could only stop, turn and look, seeing Qiqi covering her ankle, frowning: "It kills me! I sprained my ankle!"

Hu Xiaotian silently thought, "What the hell is it to me?" but on his face he still had to show deep concern: "Is it serious?"

"It really hurts; I'm afraid it might be broken." Qiqi put on a rather painful expression.

Hu Xiaotian knew she was feigning, and feigned panic: "Princess is waiting here; I'll go call the imperial physician right away!"

Seeing him rise and walk away, Qiqi clearly intended to throw him aside here, she snapped: "Hu Xiaotian. Stop right there!"

Hu Xiaotian smiled narrowly: "Princess, I'm going to fetch the imperial physician for you; your injury must not be delayed."

"You're the doctor, carry me over!"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Princess, you may not know, but your ankle is injured; you cannot move lightly. If the wound is touched, it may leave a sequel; moreover, you are still growing, and if your two legs end up uneven in length, wouldn't you become a limp, walking badly like Eunuch Quan?" After saying this, Hu Xiaotian turned to flee.

Qiqi said: "Stop right there!"

Hu Xiaotian had no choice but to stop; Qiqi actually walked over, then put both arms on his shoulders: "Carry me!"

Hu Xiaotian secretly sighed; this girl had latched onto him, and under someone's eaves he had no choice but to bow his head; he could only carry Qiqi forward.

Qiqi said: "Where are you going?"

"Imperial Medical Institute!"

"I won't go to the Imperial Medical Institute. Carry me to the Imperial Gardens Bureau."

Hu Xiaotian sighed, could only comply.

Qiqi said: "What are you sighing about? Do you especially hate me in your heart, wishing to throw me to the ground and kill me?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "I dare not!"

Qiqi said: "Not daring is one thing, but you surely think that in your heart."

Hu Xiaotian simply pretended to be mute, too lazy to bother with her; there was simply no reasoning with this willful princess.

Qiqi also said: "Do you still remember when you last carried me?"

If it weren't for her reminder, Hu Xiaotian would almost have forgotten this; last time it was when they encountered a wolf pack on Pengyin Mountain, Qiqi sprained her ankle while fleeing, and he carried her in a desperate escape toward the Stone Forest.

Qiqi said: "Actually, your heart isn't that bad."

Hu Xiaotian's lips curled with a wry smile: "If I were vicious, I would have snapped you on Pengyin Mountain back then and wouldn't bother with your trifles; but in this world blessings and misfortunes depend on each other, and if it weren't for the lifesaving grace shown to Quan De'an and Qiqi back then, perhaps he would have already died in this coup."

Qiqi said: "Actually, I sent you to the Reserve Elegance Palace for your own good; you once saved my life, how could I forget? So I want to help you—only if you go to my place can I arrange your smooth departure from the Imperial City." She lowered her voice: "Others may not know, but I still do; in fact, you have always wanted to escape, right?"

Hu Xiaotian was half‑believing, half‑doubting Qiqi's words; rather, suspicion weighed more. This little princess's heart didn't seem that good. Hu Xiaotian said: "Princess, you've misunderstood; Xiaotian entered the palace to atone for his father's crimes, and after entering the palace the Emperor and all the eunuchs have treated him very well; Xiaotian has never thought of leaving here."

Qiqi coldly stared at the base of Hu Xiaotian's neck; to his words she gave not a single bit of belief.

Ahead was already the Imperial Gardens Bureau; Xiao Zhuozi and Xiao Dengzi saw Hu Xiaotian carrying the Little Princess back, hurried over to help; Qiqi originally had nothing to do, upon reaching the Imperial Gardens Bureau she had Hu Xiaotian release her and she jumped down from his back on her own.

A bunch of little eunuchs stared agape, thinking something big had happened; turns out this little princess was treating Lord Hu the eunuch as a mount.

Qiqi said: "Take me to have a look at the wine cellar!"

Hu Xiaotian furrowed his brows; it seemed Qiqi hadn't come here on a whim, so he brought Qiqi into the wine cellar.

Qiqi entered the wine cellar, glanced around, and softly said: "The killing intent is heavy, resentment shoots up to the heavens; it seems many wronged souls are hidden inside?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "What happened here? The Little Princess knows better than I do."

Qiqi sneered: "Last time you were in here, did you have the thought of silencing me and my aunt?"

Hu Xiaotian shook his head: "I never thought of harming the princess." This princess is not that princess; he never thought of harming Long Xi Yue, but toward Qiqi he had several times thought of silencing her, though it was only idle fancy.

"Surely you don't dare!" Qiqi said, then from her sleeve took out an object, gave it a light shake, and when unfolded it turned out to be a map.

Hu Xiaotian saw clearly: this map was actually drawn by his own hand, clearly the wine cellar's secret passage diagram, the very one he personally handed to Eunuch Quan; now it unexpectedly ended up in the Little Princess's hands. Hu Xiaotian secretly sighed, "Eunuch Quan, Eunuch Quan, you actually leaked this— isn't that tantamount to selling me out?" The fact proves this senior eunuch cannot be trusted.

Qiqi said: "No wonder you're so tense about this wine cellar; it turns out there are hidden mysteries below— take me down to have a look."

Hu Xiaotian broke out in a cold sweat: "Princess, I don't know what you mean."

Qiqi's beautiful eyes coldly fixed on Hu Xiaotian: "Even now you dare to lie to me; this map is what I obtained from Eunuch Quan, depicting the secret passages beneath the wine cellar."

After his secret was exposed, Hu Xiaotian gave a hehe laugh.

Qiqi also laughed: "Are you again thinking of killing to silence? You carried me into the Imperial Gardens Bureau; along the way countless palace folk saw you— if you dared to act against me, not only would you die, but your whole Hu clan would be exterminated and your ancestors wiped out; moreover, you had best not harbor any ill intent toward me, for even if you did, the one to die first would surely be you." Qiqi raised her left hand hidden in her sleeve slightly: "Do you think you can dodge the Violent Rain Pear Blossom Needle's shot?"

Hu Xiaotian had long learned of Qiqi's cunning; he shook his head: "Girls' curiosity being too heavy is never a good thing; the matter of the secret passages is not that I intentionally concealed it, but Eunuch Quan ordered me to keep the secret and tell no one."

Qiqi said: "Take me to see— where exactly do these three secret passages lead?"

Hu Xiaotian silently wondered, what exactly is this little girl's purpose? Could it be just to satisfy curiosity? Hu Xiaotian nodded and said: "Then you must first tell me, how did you obtain this picture?"

Qiqi said: "Eunuch Quan gave it to me!"

Hu Xiaotian absolutely refused to believe this; Quan De'an would surely not lightly leak this matter, nor would he drag the little princess into it for no reason, but Qiqi was unwilling to tell the truth, and he could not resort to force, so he could only wait until he later saw Quan De'an to ask clearly.

The secret passage was originally no longer a secret; in the imperial palace, at least Quan De'an, Li Yuncong, and Ji Feihua already knew of this matter, and now even Qiqi knew it; indeed it had become a thoroughfare, today the Emperor had already assigned him to oversee Zilan Palace, the passage leading to Zilan Palace in between thus lost its original meaning; from now on he could openly go meet Princess Anping, why bother with such sneaky deeds.

Hu Xiaotian thought of this, nodded, and led Qiqi down toward the secret passage. Qiqi saw Hu Xiaotian move the wine barrel and stone slab, revealing the opening below; her beautiful eyes sparkled with delight as she exclaimed: "Where does this secret passage lead?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "I'm not sure; I've never gone to the end." He certainly wouldn't tell the truth.

Qiqi said: "Let's go take a look!" She snatched the lantern from Hu Xiaotian's hand, strode forward, and Hu Xiaotian had no choice but to follow behind her. Things have come to this; we can only take it step by step, hoping that this little girl is just acting on curiosity, nothing more.

Faced with three passageways, Qiqi chose the leftmost one, the same choice Hu Xiaotian had made initially; this passageway leads to the Jade Pool. The route map that Hu Xiaotian gave Quan De'an also indicated the location with a picture, without any clear textual labels.

After walking a while, the two reached the end of the passageway; ahead was nothing but water, and Qiqi furrowed her lovely brows, asking, "Is there still an opening below that connects to the outside?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "I've never been out!" He responded with utter ignorance. (To be continued~^~)